With regard to an air conditioning apparatus for a vehicle, in general, a blower, a cooling heat exchanger and a heating heat exchanger are arranged closed to each other in an air conditioning case, so as to reduce an overall size of the apparatus and pressure loss of air flowing in the air conditioning case.
For example, with regard to a vehicular air conditioning unit described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,711, a cooling heat exchanger is inclined such that an air introducing surface of a core faces an upper space and a heating heat exchanger is inclined such that an air introduction surface of a core faces a lower space, in an air conditioning case. Further, an end of the cooling heat exchanger is adjacent to an end of the heating heat exchanger, at a position close to a casing of a blower. Namely, the cooling heat exchanger and the heating heat exchanger are arranged in a reversed V-shape at the position close to the blower, so as to reduce the size of the air conditioning unit with respect to an up and down direction.
The air conditioning case has foot openings on right and left side walls with respect to a vehicle width direction. The foot openings are opened and closed by foot doors that are provided to be movable along the side walls. In this case, an air passage and the like are provided in a track of rotation of the foot doors. Because a space provided between the foot doors is used for the air passage, the size of the air conditioning unit with respect to a vehicle front and rear direction is reduced.
However, in an air conditioning case having foot openings simply on side walls, because a flow direction of air is largely changed while the air flowing into the foot openings, it is difficult to maintain the volume of air. Otherwise, it will be necessary to enlarge the foot openings. In a case where the foot openings are enlarged, operation ranges of the foot doors need to be increased, resulting in the increase in the overall size of an air conditioning apparatus.